Customer Reviews

Bryce 5

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

You really can't get a program this powerful for a better price. However, it isn't nearly as intuitive a program as I'd been lead to believe. Having never used any of the previous versions I didn't have any idea how anything in it worked. So... I cracked out the manual that comes with it and worked through the two "classes" that are in it.

Those walk-thrus are okay, but they do seem to assume prior knowledge to some extent. It took me quite a while to discover that there was a selection bar along the top of the screen that disappears unless you set your mouse pointer on it for a bit. Once I discovered that things improved quite a bit.

The walk-thrus a great introductory exercises as far as they go, but frankyly they could have used at least two or three more. There are new features to Bryce 5 that they don't even mention in the book. The book doesn't tell you that there is a "Tree Lab", and there isn't anything it about Metaballs. Really the manual takes the attitude that discovering how things work in the program is just all part of a great adventure. If it were a game I could kinda/sorta buy into this, but since it is a productivity sort of program, I think they're just making excuses for not having a fully fleshed out manual.

The only thing that has really saved me is that there are quite a few "how to" articles on the web that you can use to learn more. I'm making some pretty interesting pictures now, and learn something new every time I try a new project.

So, while I recommend the program, I suggest purchasing "Real World Bryce" (only available for up to version 4, but still very useful) at the same time. Also, go to all of the various 3D web sites out there and print out some "how to" articles - they'll help you immensely.

I have used this software for over three years and have enjoyed the high quality renderings that I receive. It is easy to fit it into an animation computer array and the end product easily transfers to other design and editing software. On highest quality and resolution, rendering can take days, but the extreemly hight quality can go direct to post production studios. For web use I suggest rendering in lower resolutions. I Love the Bryce Skys :)

I was really surprised on the price drop. this was over two hundred dollars a couple of years ago.
For the money I was extremely impress on how my animations looked when I convert files and made DVDs.
Needless to say, the learning curve on this is steep and after a year, I don't really get some of the things that's offered in this software.
rendering is slow and there's nothing you can do about it.
I have a P4 1.7ghz and one of my work took over 30days to render.
The results are great!

I'll just list what I did't like about Bryce5:

The terrain editor, Booleans and even "Metaballs" don't do a very good job of modeling and will doubtfully be enough to keep you satisfied very long. (TIP: don't forget you can Ctrl-Shift click for "negative" Metalls)

B5 only allows one view at a time. Most 3D programs let you view the scene from perspective, top, side, bottom ALL AT THE SAME TIME. Toggling the one view gets old quick.

B5 does not support realtime shading (OpenGL) - the main viewing window only shows a wireframe of the scene. There's a "nano preview" window in the top lefthand corner showing the fully rendered scene, but, at 1 inch wide, it's so tiny that your eyes will get blurry looking at it.

In "top" view (looking straight down at the objects), the outside edges of wireframes disappear, making exact positioning over other wireframes difficult.

The rendering engine is the slowest (by far) of any 3D program...and, really, how many who buy this lower-end title are going to use the "network rendering" feature?

B5 doesn't support exporting anything except terrains. Thus, it's not possible to export a shape/object out into a UV mapper for "skinning" (unless you manage to shape something decent with the terrain editor - ugh). You can import just about anything, though.

The "task bar" DOES NOT WORK (freezes) when the Bryce5 is running. Doesn't seem like a big deal, but gets really annoying when you're toggling back and forth from your photo/paint program and you have to keep minimizing Bryce.

The tree lab will crash the program (and possibly your computer) if your not careful with some of the sliders. The tree trunks are not bendable.

I would suggest buying a used version of Bryce4 (I'd actually go Bryce3 for super cheap) to get your feet wet, but now that DAZ (who seem legitimately enthusiastic about nurturing this title) has bought Bryce5 from Corel, they may add some much needed features in future versions for a relatively low upgrade price

I like this software, I highly recommend it for 3D rendering, I also highly recommend a rather nice PC, as it hangs mine every time :-) 2 thumbs up